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Identifying Flowering Plants

Identifying Flowering Plants

Aberystwyth University Life Long Learning programme: Certificate of Field Ecology/Conservation Each course/module costs £100, please book onto the course through Aberystwyth University 01970 62 2682 before booking your optional full board accommodation at CAT.

Course outline

Dates, Times & Fees

The essential skills developed during this course make it ideal for professional development but also for anyone simply fascinated by plants and ecology.

Examine specimens and become familiar with the huge variety of flower and leaf forms and the equally huge and often confusing terminology used in the wild flower books and ‘keys’.

You will be given the confidence to use ‘flora’ and ‘keys’ and identifying unknown flowering plant species on your own.

Emphasis will be on practical skills with examination and identification taking place mainly in the laboratory but with excursions around the venue to put new found knowledge to the test!

This is a fascinating and essential core course for both ecology certificates. It is an excellent background for anyone interested in both wild and garden plants.

The course will be run as a practical workshop where you will be shown how to use a stereo microscope and use reference texts and keys to identify specimens. We will focus on common species to gain an understanding of the terminology involved. The habitats around the venue will be investigated and a diverse range of other specimens will be available. By the end of the course you should be able to tackle the identification of unknown specimens and recognise a good range of common species.

Complete beginners will be challenged but no prior knowledge is required to tackle the course. Students with some previous knowledge or familiarity with general plant identification terminology will be at a slight advantage. There will be 20 contact hours with the tutor but additional study time during the evenings would be beneficial. You will be encouraged to ask questions and share ideas, to learn not only from the tutor but also from other members of the group.

The course is fully accredited by Aberystwyth University giving you the opportunity to study at Higher Education CQFW level 5, giving 10 credits which are excellent for professional development. Assessment work is embedded in the course and consists of keeping a ‘portfolio’ as a running record of your observations and ideas which would be a useful reference document. You also complete a short identification test and produce a key of your own.

The ring bound notebook for the ‘portfolio’ is included in the course fee. Reference books, keys, microscopes, specimens and all other materials/equipment needed will be provided for your use during the course.

The University of Aberystwyth School of Education and Lifelong Learning aims to offer a range of accredited (intensive) courses at CAT to enable students to gain a Higher Education Certificate in Field Ecology.

The Certificates would take a minimum of two to three years to complete. Gaining the Certificate would enable you to become a competent field ecologist, able to plan and undertake field survey work and identify key species. These are useful skills that are in high demand for many environmental and conservation jobs.

The core courses of this Certificate cover general ecology, the diversity of plants and animals and plant identification. There are also many key and optional courses to choose from involving the identification, habitat and general ecology of a range of groups: invertebrates, mammals, bats, mosses, lichens, grasses, flowering plants, birds, pond life and many more.

Individual courses can be built up in to the Certificate of Field Ecology.

If you are interested in working towards this Certificate, more information, help or advice is available from the School of Education and Lifelong Learning Aberystwyth University, telephone Paula Hughes 01970 62 2682 (mornings only) .

You do not need a scientific background to succeed.

For more information on taking this course as part of a field certificate through Aberystwyth School of Lifelong Learning Click here(opens new web page)

Course fees are £100, please book onto the course through Aberystwyth University 01970 62 2682 before booking your optional full board accommodation at CAT.

Full board accommodation at CAT costs £120.

Please book accommodation by emailing courses@cat.org.uk or by phone on 01654 704 952.